【英语趣味课堂】温泉-Onsens

 Steve: Hi, this is Steve. I'm going to talk about Japanese Onsen. Onsen is like a public bath, where men go, or women, in separate areas of course, and enjoy very hot baths. I like it very much because it's very relaxing and it's very healthy. They have different kinds of baths with different sort of flavors, you might say. Some baths have minerals like sulfur¹, or radium, or even camphor in them and they have different health benefits. After bathing in an onsen, for an hour or two you take a shower, shave, and wash your body and then afterwards, you feel really, really good. I like to go for sushi after onsen. 

学习内容：

public bath

 

Onsen is like a public bath.

 

A 'public bath' has become a place of relaxation² for people now.  It is an area of warm water that was used for public sanitation³ in the past. Notice the following:

 

Public baths are very popular in Turkey.

Did you visit a public bath in Japan.

of course

 

The men and women are in separate areas, of course.

 

We add the phrase 'of course' when a statement is obvious or we want to draw attention to it. Notice the following:

 

Of course, you have to remember that he is just a kid.

You will still have to be careful of course.

relaxing

 

These hot baths are very relaxing and very healthy.

 

If something is 'relaxing' it helps relieve stress and tension. Notice the following:

 

I just want to have a relaxing night at home.

The massage⁴ and the tea were very relaxing after a long week at work.

flavor

 

They have different kinds of baths with different flavors.

 

A 'flavor' is a taste that something has.  For example, candy can taste like fruit or have fruit 'flavor.' Notice the following:

 

This candy has a familiar flavor, but I can't think of what it is.

This soup has excellent flavor.

minerals

 

Some baths have minerals like sulfur or radium.

 

A 'mineral' is a substance that naturally occurs in nature.  Many time people create mines to take some of these minerals out of the earth. Notice the following:

 

Fresh vegetables are full of vitamins and minerals.

He uses natural minerals in his jewelry⁵.

1 sulfur   

n.硫，硫磺（=sulphur）

参考例句：

• Sulfur emissions from steel mills become acid rain.炼钢厂排放出的硫形成了酸雨。
• Burning may produce sulfur oxides.燃烧可能会产生硫氧化物。

2 relaxation   

n.松弛，放松；休息；消遣；娱乐

参考例句：

• The minister has consistently opposed any relaxation in the law.部长一向反对法律上的任何放宽。
• She listens to classical music for relaxation.她听古典音乐放松。

3 sanitation   

n.公共卫生，环境卫生，卫生设备

参考例句：

• The location is exceptionally poor,viewed from the sanitation point.从卫生角度来看，这个地段非常糟糕。
• Many illnesses are the result,f inadequate sanitation.许多疾病都来源于不健全的卫生设施。

4 massage   

n.按摩，揉；vt.按摩，揉，美化，奉承，篡改数据

参考例句：

• He is really quite skilled in doing massage.他的按摩技术确实不错。
• Massage helps relieve the tension in one's muscles.按摩可使僵硬的肌肉松弛。

5 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。